Fuzzy Trails
by ChelseeLynneZeldaa
Summary: Scarlet Lydia Piper is a young girl who searches for her birth parents.
1. Chapter 1

A girl's fifteenth birthday isn't a big deal. It's just 'the-year-before-sixteen' birthday. My friends weren't even going to be in town for it, so we were spending that Thursday together in my room. They brought alcohol- wine coolers, to be exact. Mike's hard lemonade, the only kind I liked. Mike and Jamie were my best friends since the fourth grade, and they made my life exciting and as if there wasn't a hole in my heart. We clinked our glasses together.

"Scar's fifteen, finally with us adults," Mike teased me. I stuck my tongue out at him- real mature, Scarlet. At midnight, we took a sip and laughed and joked about the stupidest inside jokes. Like how Jamie and I had flicked poptart crumbs into his long-ish curly brown hair without him noticing when he flirted with girls. He always made a face at that one when we mentioned it.

"So," Jamie began, pausing to take a swig of her cooler. She looked around with bug-eyes, the brown hues managing to make her face look funny. I couldn't help but chuckle, and Mike almost spit his drink all over the tie-dye blanket we sat on in a triangle. My mom was out for the night, giving us privacy, so we weren't paranoid.

"You ask your mom about your real parents yet?" She sat her already-half-empty drink down. Mike eyed me cautiously, he knew that Jamie tread on thin ice when she brought that up usually. But, with me in a decent mood and us having actually spoken about the topic, things were fine. I tossed my empty bottle in the almost full trash can, thankful that my mom didn't snoop.

"Nah," I said cooly, picking at the chips situated in the middle of us. Two wrapped gifts sat on my open windowsill, and an extra bag of Doritos under them against the wall. I had two wall tapestries, one with an elephant on a tie-dye orange background, the other the tree of life in black, a green and yellow tie dye background, on walls adjacent to each other. I had a few paintings made my yours truly on the wall opposite of Tayla the elephant (the nickname that Jamie decided was necessary for a tapestry) and my bed right next to them. The rest of my room was plan aside from a dresser full of clothes and a bookcase almost full of books.

"I didn't know how to bring it up, y'know?" I stuffed my mouth full of cool ranch Doritos. My friends just nodded silently. Both of them having two parents, happily married, they probably didn't want to act like they understood when they really didn't, which I respected a lot.

"I think I might ask her tomorrow. I want to meet them. I've thought a lot though," I rambled, a full mouth. I paused just to swallow. I tended to pig out on chips a lot. "What if they died or something, or if my mother doesn't know my father, like she got knocked up or something, or maybe it was a teenage girl, or a drug addict. Maybe she might be Hispanic or something. I am kind of tan, so it makes a bit of sense." I sighed, my friends turning their attention to their phones.

I really did wander about them a lot, my parents. I wonder if I got my mom's green eyes, or my dad's somewhat tan skin, or his wavy, sandy blonde hair, which I kept at a long length. I liked the way it blew in the wind. Maybe they were looking for me, too, or any other family of mine was. I kept their last name, to my mom's decision. She told me she wanted me to have a chance to find them. The only thing I knew was that I was born in the northwest, by the beach, but that's it.

"Earth to Scar!" Mike said, poking my cheek with a chip. I quickly bit it out of his hand, laughing as I chewed.

"So, Miss Scarlet Piper, do you have a crush on anyone?" Jamie asked me in a game of truth or dare. I thought hard about it, then shook my head.

"Not really, actually." I giggled, using my turn to ask Mike his. He got dare.

"I dare you.. to chug that beer," I smirked evilly. And he did.

The night went pretty great. I got a new charm for my bracelet from Jamie, and Mark added a charm as well as getting me a new tie-dye dress, which he and Jamie picked out together. It was green with brown and blue rings and waves. I fell in love with it. We sat in my room wide awake until three a.m., when my mom got home. After that, we stashed the drinks in a different looking bag within my garbage and passed out. Jamie and I slept on my floor-mattress (I wanted it that way) and Mike slept on the floor, snoring loudly. Mom always let Mike stay over- she knew nothing was going on, and that he was gay. Jamie had a serious boyfriend, Josh, and I was single, gladly. I didn't take to the dating world. I decided, before I totally zonked out, that tomorrow would be the day I would ask my mom about my birth parents. She was taking me out to eat at an Asian buffet, so I would ask there. I had peaceful dreams about the woods, and also myself, for some reason, chasing Jamie with a bag of Doritos in my hand.


	2. Chapter 2

So, I did ask my mom about my parents. We had just sat down with our full plates and drinks, and that's when I popped it.

"Mom, I know you don't want me to ask this, but.. I want to know about my birth parents." I stated as strongly as I could. She paused what she was doing and sighed heavily, almost sadly. Was it really that bad? I braced myself for the worst. She looked me in the eyes and feigned a smile.

"The only thing I knew was where they were from," she began. "I meant to not tell you this until you were older but.. You're very mature for your age, you can handle it," she smiled at me proudly and continued speaking as I sipped my coke and grabbed for my fork. General Tso's, hell yes. I plopped a piece in my mouth and she continued.

"Forks, Washington, somewhere near the coast." She started to eat her food as well. "I'm not sure as to who they are, but I also know that they were adults when they had you. That's all I know. Oh, and you're of Indian descent," she said, finally digging into her food after I nodded cooly. _Indian? _I kept eating my food silently until I had four plates and she had three.

"That's.. interesting, mom," I said, maintaining a grin as I offered to pay the tip to the waitress. She was kind and tentative, so I left a ten. I always left more than usual. That went well, I thought to myself. When we were almost home, I noticed I felt a little sick in my stomach, and warm. We walked in the door and I popped two tums tablets.

"Stomach ache?" Mom asked, and I just nodded. My mom was always caring about me the way any mom would to her daughter, and I loved that. Dad died a few years after I was adopted, so I don't have any memory of him. Mom said he was a great man, though. And he did write me a note, which explained how he had high hopes for his "little Scarlet" and how much he loved me. I kept it hidden in my room, in a zipper in a stuffed cat they had gotten me as a baby to welcome me home. Even though Marcia was tattered and her white fur coat had now resembled a mop, she was still my little cuddle-baby.

"Go lay down until it goes away- we did eat a lot. Left side," she smiled and waved me off to my room. I climbed the stairs, feeling warmer and sicker by the second. All I wanted was sleep. I collapsed into bed, snuggling into Marcia and burrowing under my blankets, loving the feel of the safeness wrapped in a comforter. The heat didn't bother me, yet it did at the same time. I didn't sleep well, I couldn't sleep at all, actually. The stomach ache was pretty bad, and now my head and throat hurt, too. It wasn't long before I noticed that I had spent the entire day in bed, sick.

_Happy birthday to me. _


	3. Chapter 3

My eyes snapped, the green LED of the alarm clock blaring into my face: 3:27 A.M. June 13th was pixelated in the tiny corner. It burned my eyes. I went to stretch but, everything was on _fire. _I sat up slowly, my head spinning. Did I really sleep almost ten hours? I still felt tired, but wide awake. I blinked my dry eyes slowly, looking around the darkened room. In seconds, my stomach and throat had a feeling that caused me to hop out of my bed, almost falling on my face, and dash into the bathroom. General Tso's does not feel better coming back up.

I sat on the bathroom floor, getting sick every few minutes. Hours passed and after two, I laid on the floor, the cool tile feeling like heaven on my cheek and temple. A sigh of relief escaped my lips as I laid. The nausea had passed- well, kind of. I didn't feel like tossing my cookies anymore. I flushed whatever was in there and slowly pulled myself onto my feet. My feet padded cautiously on the carpet into my bedroom and back onto my bed. I laid there silently, my eyes closed and taking slow, deliberate breaths. I felt the empty spot in my soul ache more than usual, but I, as usual, tried to block it out. Parents? Soulmate? Blood family? My mind spun, but I forced it to quiet down. I snuggled the stuffed kitten and tried to ignore the sickness and stuff that I felt. Seven thirty already. Thank goodness it was summer. I rolled over onto my side, gazing into the mirror across from my bed. My long, wavy black hair was pulled into a bun on the back of my head. Thin strips of black framed my red but pale face. I saw gray-blue eyes staring back, bags under the eyes. Everything on me read: sick.

I woke up three hours later, aware of the fact that my mom had already left for work. I still felt horrible, but worse, and I didn't even remember falling back asleep. A low growl came from my stomach, but the thought of food made my throat close up a bit. I padded to the kitchen, grabbed a banana from a bowl on the table, and laid on the couch. I felt so hot, but my body was shivering. Hot, cold, hot cold. I had a blanket half on and half off of me for a few hours. I managed a few bagels and some fruit without getting sick. It was about three when my mom called to check on me.

"I'm making you an appointment for tomorrow morning, okay? I've never seen you this sick before."

Her voice was filled with general concern. But she was right, I never got sick, this was the first time in about two years that I had. And it was never this bad before, not even close. I smiled thankfully.

"Okay. Thanks, mom," I croaked into the phone. We said our goodbyes and hung up. The second my phone screen turned black, a voice sounded in my head. It was like a megaphone, crackling at full volume: run.

I stood up, not even the slightest bit wobbly. I would have slid on my shoes, but there was no need. I didn't even change my clothes. It was as if an instinct kicked in for me. I opened the door, dashed out, and slammed it shut in a split second. My bare feet kicked off of the ground as I ran. 3 blocks passed in 30 seconds. This was.. exhilarating. I tore off into the woods. It was as if a compass in my head screamed: go west. I obeyed.

It hit me as I ran that Forks was in the west, northwest, actually. Was that where? All the way in Washington? For some reason, a voice in my head bellowed, "do it." Again, I obeyed.

Ohio _was _pretty far from Washington but, I couldn't ignore what I felt. My body began to shiver- whether it was my dizzy head or the heat outside getting to me, the tremors didn't fade, but they built. My mind began to cloud. I pushed myself to run faster on the leaves, twigs, and dirt, laughing in excitement from the speed I now had. I wanted to stop and ask myself, what the hell? Suddenly I can run this fast when I had little to no ability to run in gym? I didn't- I just kept going.

Ten minutes and I was panting. My heart beat in my ears, thrumming loudly. My hair had come out of its bun, now wildly messed all around my head and face. I paused, my sweaty palms on my knees as I breathed. I had already made it a mile and a half, I think. The shaking grew. I fell onto my back, hearing every stick snapping as I fell. A soft breeze blew, causing the branches to sway in the most beautiful way. The sunlight streamed through the leaves, and I felt alive. I lay there shivering and a giggle left my lips as I realized I was still in a tank and blue boxer shorts.

Suddenly, a burn erupted from my heart through my veins. A scream wracked through me, only to be cut off by a heavier, hotter wave of fire. I couldn't feel myself anymore. I felt the shaking, but it were as if I couldn't move. Strangled begs for help echoed, but no help came. _What the hell is wrong with me?!_

The burn only increased. I struggled for breath. It felt like hours, but after minutes, I felt a new, dull pain.

A muffled crack from my spine.

My jaw slacked open, no scream coming. I felt my body shifting, the shaking fading away as it did. Unbearable pain flared through my entire body in its place.

Then suddenly- it was gone.

My body was flat on the ground, belly down. I felt the breeze once more- only this time, no bare skin for it to hit. I opened my eyes, and almost screamed at the sight before me.

Instead, a stressed howl echoed through the trees.

Furry, midnight black paws.


	4. Chapter 4

_Paws._

_Paws._

_PAWS._

I nearly jumped out of my skin at the sight. I jumped- well, more like I flipped backwards and landed on my back. Everything felt so.. clear. Well, not clear, but sensitive. As I rolled onto my side and wobbly got to my feet- sorry, _paws, _and looked around. My eyes took in everything.

The ground was an earthy brown with tan and green blades of grass splotching the area. Twigs and leaves laid at random, and there was no definite path in sight. My right ear pricked- a repeated scratching noise caught my interest. My mind was clear at this point as I soaked up the area around me. The scurrying was a squirrel climbing a tree, I'd guess. I could hear its heartbeat from twenty feet below. I took a deep breath, drawing in all of the luscious, musky scents of the scenery around me. Woodsy, nutty smells filled my lungs. I exhaled again, calming my still-racing heart.

I heard air swishing then, and in one, swift motion, I turned my head, seeing a furry, pure white tail swishing happily. It stopped the second my heart did. I thought I saw black paws? My body moved fluidly, and I rolled and jumped, looking at myself as best as I could. My paws were the only thing that were black. From the shoulders up, my fur was a pure snow white. Well, I couldn't see my face, but I'd assume that it was white, as well.

The one thought that brought me to this place returned, in a bold voice, screaming as loud as my mind could handle-

_North-west, home. Go. _

I did as my mind instructed.

In a swift movement, my feet kicked under me, and I began sprinting. The trees passed at an unbelievably fast pace, almost blurring, but I didn't hit a single one. My mind processed everything in slow motion, the trees, the birds flying away as I passed their nests, other animals that my mind branded as **prey. **

Heavy paws connected to my arms thudded rhythmically, and I ran until my legs almost gave out. The sun had set, and I had passed highways with ease. I was in northern Idaho, the thin strip of land between Montana and Washington. I laid for a break by a clear, slightly green tinted lake. My arms and back stretched, the tail swishing as I did.

_Calm, relax, almost home. _

I, luckily, didn't sense or smell or even hear any humans nearby, which was good. I knew some people hunted wolves, but I noticed I was much taller, at least nine feet, than a normal wolf. The almost-full moon lit the night sky, stars twinkling as if they were attempting to outshine the moon. But the moon always prevailed.

After hours of running, my body and mind were entirely calm. I would be home tomorrow, or close, at least, and I was finally in a calm woods. The animals were asleep, or some weren't, seeing as some were nocturnal. I, however, wasn't one of them. Before I fell asleep, I carefully got back on my tired feet, pacing slowly to the lake. I took a few sips, well, laps of water, and peered. My face was white fur, my eyes a bright, shocking emerald, and my nose was black. I smiled, and almost laughed. My teeth bared in the funniest way. Milky white and threatening.

I realized then- I had mittens. Something I always noticed on my friend in third grade's cat had on his four paws. I huffed a throaty wolf-laugh, walking in a circle to flatten the grass. A form of bed, I mentally smiled. I laid, easily getting comfortable. I heard the bats calling out and flapping their wings in search of bugs in the sky. I didn't remember falling asleep.

I woke up, well refreshed- _and the sun was already almost high in the sky. _I hopped up, noticing how long I had slept. At least twelve hours? At least. I still didn't know how to shift back, which was good in a way. I didn't wake up buck-naked. I huffed a chuckle. My muscles weren't tired or sore anymore, and finally, I was well rested. I took a deep breath, and took off. I wasn't far- _estimating the time it took to get there and how fast I ran, it should only take me about an hour to get to the coast. Forks. _

I passed the state line in minutes. Adrenaline pushed me harder, excitement helped with that. The hour felt like days, but I smelled sea, salt water, sand, fire, other wolves, and something sweet. Were there other wolves? Fear joined that adrena-citement mix, making me run fasted. Suddenly, the thicket of trees tapered off, and I was skidding to a stop. On a cliff.

I stopped just in time before falling off the edge. Pebbles and dirt flew as I finally stopped, and the fear disappeared as I realized where I was.

Home.

My excitement ran dry as I heard a deep, menacing snarling from behind me. I slowly turned around- authority radiated off this midnight black werewolf's being. I couldn't help but cower down onto my belly, an instinct, and look up at him. I whimpered, an attempted apology. I didn't know others were here, I was sorry for trespassing. Was I not allowed here?

"Phase back so we can speak with you!" A voice sounded from the woods. Phasing must mean shifting, I mentally noted. I nodded as much as I could with my head flat on the ground. The midnight black wolf turned his head to the trees then back to me, as if telling me to go change back. I slowly got up and trotted cautiously into the forest. In a small clearing of tight trees laid a pair of jean shorts and a plain tank top, along with a underclothes, thank goodness. I sat down, confused on how to change back. I sighed, calming myself. It didn't work. I wasn't a patient person.

I tried something. I imagined myself looking in a mirror. My wolf self, slowly, limb by limb, turning back. I opened my eyes, and I was sitting on my bare butt on the ground. I chuckled, my actual giggle coming out. Finally. I stretched my arms, then got dressed as quickly as I could. The clothes fit perfectly and I was incredibly thankful for them. I cautiously walked out of the woods once more, seeing two tall, muscly, tan men standing in front of me. The scent of the black wolf came off of the one who looked just a little bit wiser than the other. They both had short black hair.

"State your name and your business coming onto Quilliete land," the black wolf said. My mouth hung open for a second, not sure of what to say. His tan resembled mine, both of theirs did.

"I-" I stuttered. "My name is Scarlet Piper. I.. came here to find my birth parents. I was told they were in Forks." I rubbed the back of my neck with the palm of my clammy hand. Nervous.

"You seem like you're not used to being on four legs yet. How long have you been like this? Where are you from?" The other one was the one to quiz me now.

"I'd guess about 24 hours, honestly. I'm from Ohio."

"Didn't take you long. I guess you run pretty fast, huh?" The second-speaking one asked again. I nodded, a slight grin playing on my face.

"Could we assist you in finding your family?" The authority-ridden one spoke. I looked around nervously.

"I'm Quil, this is Sam, sorry we never mentioned before. Business first," Quil smiled. Sam managed a straight face, still. I still hadn't answered their last question, my mind reminded me.

"I- I don't know their names.." I said nervously, looking away from them again. "Is it alright if I stay in your woods for a while? I'm not sure where else to go, honestly."

Sam laughed, a friendly face at last.

"Nonsense, kid. You can stay with us."

"Us?" I asked, unsure of what he meant.

"Well, we have someone who wouldn't mind you staying with them. It's a girl, don't worry. Things won't be super awkward," Quil chuckled. I smiled and rolled my eyes playfully.

"Might I ask who this will be?"

"Emily, this is Scarlet." Sam said, walking over to the tan woman and giving her a loving embrace and peck on the lips. There was a visible connection between the two of them. I waved nervously. The woman's long, pink scar on her face didn't bother me in the least. She greeted me with a warm smile and I returned with one. Emily turned back to an oven and opened the door to it. With oven mitts on, she pulled out a pan of cookies and piled them on top of a large, already over-filled plate full. My stomach growled at the sight. I hadn't eaten in a whole day. Two, if you count me tossing my food the day before I left. The kind woman offered one. When she turned around, I noticed a small baby-bump on her stomach. I smiled happily for her. Kids weren't my thing, but she had a motherly vibe.

"Thanks so much, Emily," I smiled happily, taking a large bite out of the cookie. I was still shy around these people. Once my mouth was clear of the bite from a head-sized cookie, I spoke.

"Thank you for being so kind to me, guys." I said to the couple- Quil had left, saying something about a kid or something. I didn't remember. "I really appreciate it. The food, letting me stay-"

"No need to thank us. We are well aware that you aren't a threat to us, so we're glad to help you." Emily's kind face turned to look at Sam, and they seemed like they were lost in each other.

"So.." I said quietly, looking at the ground.

"Oh! Yeah. Scarlet, I'm the alpha of this pack. We should talk about your- our kind. I'm sure there's a ton of things you don't know. Walk with me?" He seemed like he dreaded letting go of Emily's hand, but I agreed, and we walked through a path in the woods.

"So, I'm sure you're curious about what you are."

"Werewolf?"

Sam laughed. "Shape-shifter. No full-moon business. Watch your temper, by the way. If you get angry, you don't want to rip someone's face off. But you seem like you have patience with people, so I'm not too worried with you staying with Emily, the baby, and myself." I nodded, mumbling a thank you.

"How long have you and Emily been together? You both seem very happy, and cute together," I smiled happily for them.

"Five years. We're expecting a daughter in December." Sam's face lit up. "Oh! One thing you should know about. Imprintation."

I gave him the look of, 'huh?'

"Imprintation. Soul mates, basically. All of us has one, whether we find her or him or not. It's kind of like, they tie you to this earth. Example, Emily is my imprint. Renesmee Cullen is Jacob's. Rebecca is Paul's. It's a lovely thing, honestly."

I smiled happily at the thought, but I didn't know half of the people. It was a nice topic. I was very happy for all of these people, finding love.

"The pack isn't big, but it isn't small. We also have a treaty with the Cullens- Wait, do you know who I'm talking about?"

I shook my head.

"The Cullens are vampires. They have a vampire-human hybrid in their coven."

I stared at him blankly, stopping in my tracks.

"Vampires exist, too?"

He laughed. "You betcha, kiddo. They're nice, though. Only hunt animals. I'm sure you'll meet them sometime." I just nodded, struggling to take it all in. Vampires. Soulmates. Wolves.

"It's getting late, and I'm sure you could use a full meal and some sleep. We'll talk tomorrow." He said as we began walking back to the small home. I nodded silently. I was tired, and hungry- even after the face-sized cookie.

Once we got back, Emily showed me to my room. Down the hall, to the left were three rooms. They all looked similar. She lead me into the first one, a wood-walled room with a twin-sized bed, dresser, closet, and vanity-type thing.

"I'll have Leah bring you some clothes tomorrow, Scarlet." Emily said as I got ready for bed. Basically just pulling my hair into a bun and jumping under the covers.

"Okay. Hey, Emily?"

"Yeah?"

"Thank you, so much, for all of this. I never expected anyone to be this kind to someone they barely knew, someone who could turn into a giant wolf. I appreciate all of this, a lot." I smiled at her, blushing. She just waved her hand.

"Shh. No need to thank us. You seem like a good kid."

With that, she left the room and closed the door. I didn't even remember my head hitting the pillow.


End file.
